In the seminar about "Envisioning the Black Freedom Movement in African American Literature", considering the very core of resistance was a recurrent topic. The idea of Black Women being fungible for White feminists, yet having non-black communities profit off of the efforts made by Black Women and Queers in particular clearly depicts the "second-class" positions Black people are assigned to by White Western society. Having analyzed the fabrics of Black Freedom Movements as an academic focal point, it is indisputable that gender has played a prominent role in the establishment of racial American Identity. Starting off by integrating flight plans and whereabouts for meetings in creole gospel songs during slavery in America, this form of lyrical resistance reached a point of becoming an urbanized genre of music. Merging sonically advanced melodies and beats with verbally asserted subject matters on police brutality, racial and socioeconomic constructs and lack of self-reflection strongly resonated with maltreated Black people in the US in the late 1970's. The industrialization of the Hip-Hop Genre led to an exposure of this specific part of the Black Culture to the White mass consumers, inherently leading to the myth of "Ghetto's being the platform for drug selling and abuse" promoted via white media to be validated as well as implemented into the hyper masculine stature of male rappers, who dominated the HipHop Industry. However, as hyper masculinity was propagated in music videos to include the representation of the (partially) nude female body in music videos by having video vixens dance to the male gaze, the tropes set up by white people were also attached to many other artists and participants of the Hip-Hop culture. While there have been many iconic female rappers in the industry that turned mogul, one of them stands out in the context of this introduction to the trope-based interpretation of white criticism towards female rappers: Nicki Minaj, best selling and perhaps the most influential female rapper. Especially after the release of her record breaking music video "Anaconda", the criticism vocalized clearly followed a racialized perception of the female Black body.
This term paper aims to shed light onto the concealed persistence of a specific trope Black women are assigned to in the Hip-Hop industry, which has shifted to being marketed to lager white audiences.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- I. Introduction
- II. Main Part
- i. HIP HOP AS LYRICAL RESISTANCE
- ii. From Tropes to Hypersexualization
- iii. Hip-Hop feminism
- iv. Nicki Minaj
- (i) Come-Up and Importance
- (ii) Anaconda - Achievement and Critique
- (iii) Perception and Critique of White Western Media
- III. Conclusion
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This term paper aims to shed light onto the concealed persistence of a specific trope Black women are assigned to in the Hip-Hop industry, which has shifted to being marketed to larger white audiences. This paper analyzes the hypersexualization of Black women in Hip-Hop and its relation to the Jezebel trope, exploring how this trope is reinforced through media representations and criticism directed towards female rappers. It also examines how Hip-Hop feminism, as a framework for understanding and challenging these issues, is relevant in understanding Nicki Minaj's career and reception.
- The persistence of the Jezebel trope in contemporary Hip-Hop culture
- The role of hypersexualization in the representation of Black women in music videos
- The emergence of Hip-Hop feminism as a counter-narrative
- The career of Nicki Minaj as a case study for understanding the complexities of race, gender, and representation in Hip-Hop
- The impact of white Western media and its role in perpetuating negative stereotypes
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
- I. Introduction: The introduction explores the historical context of Black resistance in America, tracing the origins of lyrical resistance from gospel songs during slavery to the rise of Hip-Hop as a form of cultural expression. It highlights the persistent theme of Black women being marginalized and exploited within the context of both White feminist movements and the larger American society. The introduction also establishes Nicki Minaj as a central figure in this analysis, specifically due to the controversy surrounding her music video "Anaconda".
- II. Main Part (i): This section examines the origins of Hip-Hop as a form of lyrical resistance against racial and social injustice. It explores the development of the genre as a response to the systemic oppression faced by Black people in the United States, particularly the economic and social consequences of the War on Drugs. It also discusses the rise of two distinct personas among male rappers - the gangsta rapper and the politically conscious rapper - each representing different facets of Black experience.
- II. Main Part (ii): This section delves into the concept of tropes, specifically focusing on the Jezebel trope and its impact on the hypersexualization of Black women in Hip-Hop. It explains how the Jezebel trope, rooted in white patriarchal power structures, has been used to justify the objectification and exploitation of Black women, both historically and contemporarily. The section also examines the ways in which this trope has manifested in music videos and media representations of female rappers, furthering the stereotype of Black women as sexually available and hypersexualized.
- II. Main Part (iii): This section introduces the concept of Hip-Hop feminism, which provides a framework for understanding and challenging the hypersexualization of Black women within the Hip-Hop industry. It examines how Hip-Hop feminism offers a nuanced understanding of the complexities faced by Black women in the music industry, considering both the power of their artistic expression and the persistent challenges they face due to societal expectations and stereotypes.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
Key terms and concepts explored in this paper include lyrical resistance, Hip-Hop culture, Black freedom movements, hypersexualization, the Jezebel trope, Hip-Hop feminism, Nicki Minaj, "Anaconda," media representation, and White Western media. The paper investigates the intersections of race, gender, and power in shaping the experiences and artistic expressions of Black women in the Hip-Hop industry.
- Quote paper
- Saleh Efetürk (Author), 2018, The Hypersexualization of Black Women and Feminism in Hip-Hop. From The Jezebel Trope To Nicki Minaj, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/437707
